IBC 2013 Wrap Up

Another IBC has come and gone – and this year, Amsterdam ROCKED! Held in Amsterdam every September at the RAI Exhibition and Congress Centre, the IBC itself far-reaching – becoming an events not only covering broadcast media, but now one of the most influential experiences in digital cinema worldwide and reaching into other digital communications media, like mobile television and digital signage.

Here is the IBC Promotional Preview of what was expected to happen.

Without having to tell you – the NAB (National Association of Broadcasters) is to the United States what IBC (International Broadcasting Convention) is to the WORLD! Run by the industry, for the industry, IBC is owned by six industry partners that represent both exhibitors and visitors – The IABM (International Association of Broadcasting Manufacturers), The IET (Institution of Engineering and Technology), The IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers), The RTS (Royal Television Society), The SCTE (Society of Cable Telecommunication Engineers) and The SMPTE (Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers).

IBC stands at the forefront of technological innovation, bringing the key executives and committees from these leading organizations, attracting more than 50,000 creative, technical and business professionals from over 160 countries - a far cry from its very first show in 1967, in the Royal Lancaster Hotel in London, where there were just 32 exhibitors and 500 conference delegates! Simply put – it has become the premier annual event for professionals engaged in the creation, management and delivery of entertainment and news content worldwide.

Full of surprises – The Content Everywhere #ibcCE Flashmob broke-out to the wonderment of visitors on Friday morning of September 13th.

Content Everywhere is an underlying theme at this year's IBC. As it evolves, a massive shift in the way media content is consumed – specifically, video – is happening all around us. Smartphones, tablets, laptops and desktops, together with mobile broadband, has raised the bar from standard broadcast mediums to personal playback at times and moments convenient to the consumer, rather than the broadcaster.

As a result, the industry has to reshape itself to those who want to view content on demand. And the industry is responding!

IBC Content Everywhere events, which will take place in 2014/15 in Amsterdam, Dubai and Sao Paulo, showcase the rich media production, devices, apps, investment, digital marketing, social media, content personalization, big data, cloud services, second screens and much more.

While new technology and new business partners create an entirely fresh and unforeseen dynamic, IBC Content Everywhere will launch Connexions, an exclusive new club that will bring you together with like-minded professionals, both online through the Connexions Portal and onsite at IBC Content Everywhere events. The club is open 365 days a year, and will grow with each successive IBC Content Everywhere event. All attendees with a Touch & Connect device will automatically become members of this unique community.

The IBC is not just your typical convention/get-together! The conferences… the Keynote Speakers … Specialized areas such as:

IBC Connected World allowed visitors to understand the influence of wired and wireless internet delivery and devices into and out of the home

IBC Awards rewarded end-users for positive/forward thinking and breakthrough technology which had been forged in partnership with suppliers, integrators, broadcasters or production companies

IBC Workflow Solutions, where visitors could learn, via industry experts, how to eliminate costly errors in their next file-based project and build better metadata, for example

IBC Production Insight gave attendees the opportunity to spend time with the pros and test drive the latest in camera design and imaging technology in action around a fully accessorized studio set

IBC Big Screen previews of exclusive content were displayed in the sumptuous 4K, stereoscopic 3D digital projection-equipped theatre and with audio presented in Dolby 7.1 Surround Sound, An exclusive screening of The Wolverine 'Courtesy of 20th Century Fox' and the first European Screening of a re-mastered Top Gun 3D 'Courtesy of Paramount Pictures'

The Future Zone unveiled the tomorrow – today at these special exhibits of high dynamic range, in super hi-resolution, light field imaging, ambisonics and more chosen from the world's leading broadcast and academic research labs;
and, finally,

Industry Insights, a forum which answered such questions as: When will Ultra-HD arrive? Is the industry's economy in good health? Can there be a single worldwide standard for broadcast TV? These and many more illuminating queries were thrown-out with solutions to satisfy even the pickiest of industry techs!

Of course, all throughout the show, my website (www.ryansalazar.net) has been re-broadcasting much of what was being presented at the show, via press releases from the various companies that asked me to do so!

FACILIS TECHNOLOGY
The IBC 2013 brings us still more from the good folks at Facilis Technology. Facilis Technology, an industry leader with a broad customer base ranging from the tiniest post production facilities to some of the largest studios and networks, expands on the already extravagant features for its version 6.

Since its founding in 2003, Facilis has delivered thousands of TerraBlock systems to the industry. Every Terrablock system includes a host of useful features, including access to the Facilis Shared File System (a proprietary multi-platform file system) which is accessible via the Ethernet or by Fibre Channel. This shared storage solution supports 8Gbps thru 16Gbps Fiber Channel and 1 thru 10Gbps Ethernet. Collaborative workflows can thus be easily enhanced with effortless project and media sharing among multitudinous cross-platform workstations.

Version 6 also now accommodates Active Directory, which allows the synchronization of tools, thus improving the IT administrator's workflow. Version 6 can work with Adobe® Anywhere® for video which can allow the use of a centralized server, allowing network wide advanced bit rates without having to move files. Version 6 offers high capacity and performance.

Third party workflow solutions allow the integration 3 different parties in the process, thus providing professional results more easily. SyncBlock 2.0 enables more advanced archive management in the integral tired storage, which makes data more resilient and secure.

Version 6 also offers improved Apple® Final Cut Pro® X Support. Multiple users can be qualified as storage area network points, allowing more effective interaction with the system.

The Terrablock system allows project management across LT06 platforms, nearline and spinning disk. The client interface has been redesigned to improve functionality and address customer concerns and feedback. Version 6 allows administrators to limit access to its information by normal users. The system is designed to be as intuitive as possible, thus allowing the creative team more latitude without getting bogged down by intricate technical concerns.

ARRI
ARRI was definitely bursting with both guns, announcing that it is the first to implement SanDisk's new CFast 2.0 recording media in a camera (via an adapter). The Extreme Pro CFast 2.0 cards will be available in 60 GB and 120 GB capacities with write speeds up to 350 MB/s and support higher frame rates than SxS PRO cards, enabling recording of ProRes 4444 up to 120 fps.

Then, they proudly introduced AMIRA, a versatile documentary-style camera that combines exceptional image quality and affordable CFast 2.0 workflows with an ergonomic design optimized for single-operator use and extended shoulder-mounted operation featuring, among its many functions, a 200-fps slow motion speed.

ARRI's M8 is the latest and smallest lighting fixture in their M-Series of HMI lampheads, equipped with MAX Technology, a unique, patented and award-winning reflector design that unifies the advantages of a Fresnel and a PAR fixture; and they also introduced the new Ultra Wide Zoom UWZ 9.5-18/T2.9, the first super wide-angle zoom lens for the professional cine market, boasting an unusually accommodating image circle of 33.7 mm. To learn more about ARRI and these fine products, go to: http://www.arri.com.

BLACKMAGIC DESIGN
Blackmagic was on the air at The 2013 IBC! New offerings to the industry from this year's Amsterdam extravaganza include HyperDeck Software Update 4.0, ATEM 1 M/E Production Studio 4K, and DaVinci Resolve 10.

The Blackmagic Design Cinema Camera

Blackmagic has pulled out all the stops once again! The HyperDeck Software Update 4.0 improves the HyperDeck Studio Pro broadcast recorder by allowing users to more effectively utilize many more ProRes file formats effectively. Users can already record (and playback) in uncompressed form and compressed data utilized by ProRes 422 (HQ) and DNxHD formats may still be accessed. The additional formats will help users minimize file size while preserving video quality.

Customers will now have the option to have much longer record times while maintaining high quality video resolution. The ATEM 1 M/E Production Studio 4K is cutting edge – the first update for technology introduced just this year at IBC 2013 in Las Vegas this Ultra HD live production switcher incorporates 6G-SDI technology. With 10 independent 6G-SDI inputs, the most stringent video needs can be met; each of these 10 inputs also includes frame sync. This update adds several things to an already amazing product. The slightly newer version now includes 4 chroma keyers, full motion DVE, transitions, a large media pool, 2 downstream keyers, 3 independent auxiliary outputs, an audio mixer, re-sync on all video inputs.

The DaVinci Resolve 10 (beta version) is now available for customers to download. This sweeping upgrade includes such features as the ability to combine the workflows of a wide variety of differing software products. The set tools as well as the editing features have all been updated.

Among these new editing features is full multi-track editing containing 16 channels of audio per clip and unlimited video / audio tracks in the timeline. Audio can be adjusted independently of the timeline. Clip trimming support allows Slip and slide, ripple and roll allowing for dynamic displays on the timeline. The system can now support an OpenFX plug in as well as some of the other new tools it provides. The DaVinci Resolve Lite edition provides GPU support free of charge. See these and other products at www.blackmagicdesign.com.

As always, IBC did NOT disappoint! Bringing the global industry community together is the main objective of the IBC, and it carried the torch in an ongoing momentum, once again this year. For more information about The IBC, please visit: www.ibc.org. And always remember to stay blogged-in!

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